Brussels, August 13 (LaPresse) – "The exchange with Donald Trump helped clarify his intentions and allowed us to express our expectations. The American desire is to achieve a ceasefire," said French President Emmanuel Macron after the meeting of European leaders with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and U.S. President Donald Trump ahead of the U.S.-Russia summit in Alaska on Friday. "We want everything concerning Ukraine to be discussed with Ukraine," he added.

"We discussed the issue of territorial concessions, and I believe the principle to remember is that these matters must only be discussed by Ukraine. There has been no solid discussion at any level about territorial exchanges," emphasized the Paris leader. "The issues of the occupied territories will be key elements in a peace negotiation. They are inseparable from the security guarantees provided to the rest of Ukrainian territory and to Europe, and these can be discussed without the Ukrainian president at the table. There are no serious plans for territorial exchanges on the table today," he stressed.

Is Ukraine ready to make territorial concessions? "President Zelensky will say that, not us. These matters are never taken lightly, and a country that has lost so many young people defending its territory cannot make such decisions lightly," he added.

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